Buhar Library

Munshi Sayyid Sadr-ud-Din of Buhar, District Bardwan, West Bengal laid the foundation of Buhar Library. He was Mir Munshi of Mir Jafar, Nawab of Murshidabad. He served subsequently as Munshi to Lord Warren Hastings. He founded the famous Jalaliyah Madrasah (1775) and attached to the Madrasah the Jalaliyah Library. His great grandson, also known as Munshi Sayyid Sadr-ud-Din Ahmed (1843-1905) was a good scholar and he began to add manuscripts and printed books to the Buhar Library, earlier known as Jalaliyah Library. It grew to 468 Arabic, 483 Persian manuscripts, 940 Arabic 400 Persian and 140 Urdu books. Sadr-ud-Din Ahmed wanted 'the Library should remain intact for the use of all succeeding generations of Arabic and Persian Scholars'. So, he presented the Library to the Government of India under an agreement in 1904. One of the conditions was that it should be called Buhar Library.

 

An illustration from Shah Namah

 

Some of the rare works in the Buhar Library
 Several of the manuscripts in this Library are of great interest. Some of them are: history of Herat, a cosmographical work composed in the beginning of the sixth century of the Hijrah, A work of rhyme and prosody of which only three other copies are known to exist in the world. Also, an exceedingly valuable copy of the famous epic poem ' Shah Namah' by the celebrated Persian poet Makin Qasim Firdausi (933-1020 A.D.). A very fine specimen of eastern ornamentation containing richly illuminated illustrations written in fine Nastaliq.

 

 

 Title Page of Shah Namah

 An illustration from Shah Namah
 

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